Biography
One of the major objectives of our laboratory is to elucidate biological mechanisms underlying bone metastasis of different malignancies. Bone metastases or dissemination of cancer cells within the bone are considered an advanced, debilitating, and incurable disease. Despite its high morbidity and mortality, the biology of bone metastasis signifies one of the most multifaceted and fascinating processes in several malignancies. Prostate, breast, lung, and kidney cancers have characteristics of selective bone tropism.
The convolution of bone metastases derives from the intricately organized bone microenvironment where numerous vital processes, including hematopoiesis, osteogenesis, and osteolysis, are conjointly regulated with spatial limitations. Dissemination and homing of tumor cells in the bone microenvironment are uniquely primed to destabilize the homeostasis of the bone microenvironment and fuel the pathological osteolytic and osteoblastic lesions. The bone metastasis process can be separated into three key steps (seeding, dormancy, and outgrowth), and targeting dormancy and outgrowth in bone microenvironments offers the most therapeutic promise.
Our lab has developed unique techniques and experimental models that allow us to decipher bone metastasis. Metastatic tumors attain the skill to blunt or overturn the functions of the immune system. We are interested in dissecting how metastatic cancers evolve to persuade the immune system's dysfunctionality in primary and metastatic sites among tumors of diverse genetic backgrounds. Unraveling the mechanisms of the immune system and bone cell cross-talk offers therapeutic possibilities for bone metastasis. We study how cancer cells influence bone resident macrophages (Osteomacs) for their colonization and growth within the bone microenvironment and design therapeutic strategies accordingly.
Current projects in the lab include:
1. Molecular mechanism of bone metastasis (Prostate, Breast, and Lung cancer)
2. Bone Microenvironment
3. Osteoimmunology and Tumor Dormancy.
4. Development of the Bone metastasis Therapeutics
Research Opportunities:
If you are excited about contributing to bone metastasis research, join our collaborative team. We always look for a highly enthusiastic researcher to join as graduate students, summer fellows, clinical fellows, and postdoctoral fellows. We are continuously open to collaboration.
